A folk legend about destiny, obsession and regret
Deep in the mountains of northwestern Hunan, the East Peak stretches for hundreds of miles, with ninety-nine peaks standing silently among the clouds and mist like giant dragons crouching on their backs.
An ancient prophecy has been passed down from generation to generation in the local area: there should be one hundred peaks on the East Peak. If those hundred peaks appear and the energy of heaven and earth connects, heavenly soldiers and generals will descend on the clouds, and the foundation of the Golden Palace will emerge from the mountain - the foundation of the emperor can be accomplished in one day.
During the Daoguang period of the Qing Dynasty, a lame Taoist suddenly appeared and revealed the secret to Li Chengen, a wealthy man at the foot of the mountain: within three years and six months, the 100th peak would rise from the ground. But there is only one condition - the front door of his house must be closed tightly for three years and six months, no more than one day, no less than one day.
Li Chengen sealed the door. The white bamboo in the backyard began to have a heartbeat, and little white people and white horses were gestating in the bamboo joints; the pregnant sow gave birth to a monster covered with scales; the child in the concubine's belly refused to be born - all signs pointed to that fateful moment.
However, fate never obeys predictions.
At the last moment before the expiration of three years and six months, the Shimen County Magistrate and his government servants broke into the house. The moment the front door collapsed, the white bamboo exploded, and the little men, soldiers and horses in the bamboo joints were reduced to ashes in the sun; the strange pigs roared withered into piles of bones; the concubine who had been pregnant for three years died in one body and two. The hundredth peak did not appear after all.
This catastrophe left a deep mark at the foot of Dongfeng Mountain - Liangshazhai, Guluoping, Caojunba... These place names have been passed down from generation to generation, telling the regret of missing one peak. And that door that was smashed open closed all possibilities forever.
